Global Health Governance Special Issue: Reform of the World Health Organization

Volume XI, No. 1 (Spring 2017)

The contributions in this special issue underline that to understand and further the reform of the WHO, we need multi-disciplinary perspectives, reaching from political science to international law, ethnography and history. They also show that despite all seeming continuity and sclerosis, decision-making practices and the WHO’s relationship to its environment are constantly evolving. More than ever, the WHO is called upon to legitimize (or de-legitimize) state behaviour through its public authority. But there are also new and fair demands for transparency and accountability that the organization needs to take seriously if it is to claim its role as the universal health agency promoting a central health agenda for all states and all people. This unique legitimacy is its most precious asset when asking for dependable and sustainable support by its member states.